Various lures are available on the market for use by fisherman to catch game fish. One such type is a "crawler harness" or simply a "harness" wherein a leader is strung with an artificial bait comprising a plurality of beads and a spinner. The bait is captured on the leader by a connector secured at the leading end of the leader and one or more hooks secured to the trailing end of the leader.
Some fisherman purchase pre-made harnesses while others prefer to tie there own. In either case, it is desirable for a fisherman to have on hand a number of such lures with different bait combinations so that he may change lures in response to changing conditions. Those who purchase pre-tied harnesses or tie their own in advance of a fishing outing often carry several of such pre-tied harnesses in their tackle box until ready for use. However, storing several of the harnesses together in the assembled condition tends to cause the hooks to become entangled. Another disadvantage of pre-tied harnesses is that the fisherman is limited in his selection of artificial bait combinations to those of the pre-tied harnesses on hand.
In an effort to avoid the foregoing problems, some fisherman choose to carry a variety of beads of different shapes and colors along with the other components that make up the harness in an unassembled condition and then tie them as needed during the course of fishing. This, however, has heretofore necessitated the stringing of the individual beads and spinners onto the leader which is very tedious and time consuming, particularly under adverse conditions such as poor light or extreme cold. Consequently, fisherman often neglect to change the harness they are fishing because they lack the desired pre-tied bait combination and the changing of the bait or the tying of a new harness is too troublesome.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,621,437 discloses a harness-type fish lure wherein the beads and spinner device are disposed on a tube formed with outwardly flared end portions retaining the beads permanently on the tube such that the tube remains with the artificial bait when threaded onto the leader. Although this may simplify the assembling of a harness by eliminating the need to handle the beads individually, the presence of the tube adds to the cost and weight of the harness and restricts the freedom of movement of the bait as compared to when it is strung directly on the leader line, which may possibly inhibit it effectiveness. Also, the permanent end flanges of the tube prevents the fisherman from being able to change the bait combination on the tube for that of another.